


Tugging at His Robes

by HerverusLives



Series: Pulling at His Robes [1]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Non-Sexual Age Play
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-09
Updated: 2018-10-09
Packaged: 2019-07-28 18:39:10
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,611
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16247513
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HerverusLives/pseuds/HerverusLives
Summary: This popped into my head as I was reading a completely unrelated story. Just an image that I had to go with. Written on my phone.Harry arrives at Hogwarts as a underweight, abused and a little, not what Snape was expecting . Severus meets him before the sorting and is not a completely awful person. How might this change everything?





	Tugging at His Robes

**Author's Note:**

> No money being made. All for fun. All characters are JK Rowling's.

Stumbling out of the boat Harry Potter tripped over the trailing edges of his Hogwarts robe.  
While he had been measured for his uniform they didn't make the standard Hogwarts uniforms to fit his miniscule three and a half feet. His trousers were only a tad overlong but his robes swamped him making him appear as a cross between a monster from one of his cousin's cartoons he'd peeked at through the slats of the grille in his cupboard and the bumbling mouse monk Mathias in that Redwall book the nice librarian had read to him when he was little.  
Well, the little-er.  
He would never be anywhere near as big as Dudley the whale boy, he didn't get enough food to ever pudge out more than the tiny bit of weight he carried and his body just didn't seem to want to grow. It was as if he was stuck as a toddler. It didn't make sense to him.  
He was eleven. He should not be wetting the bed or sucking his thumb but they were traits he had yet to kick. Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon didn't care a wit about his upbringing so he'd never been trained in all the trivial things you teach a child. Such as how to know when they need the toilet.  
That was a big thing he struggled with. Not just at night. His primary school teachers looked at him scornfully when he wet himself just after the end of break time and he'd have to be escorted to the nurse's office, cleaned up and given a spare paint of trousers from the lost and found. The upside of this was they generally fit better than his own, being those of a younger child rather than his mountainous cousin's off casts. They'd be given back to him at the end of the day cleaned and he'd swap them out so his aunt wouldn't be suspicious of the school's supposed charity.  
But Harry often felt he was somewhat behind those around him, it took him longer to understand things than his peers. Maybe it was his magic, not using it or knowing about it or hiding from it because Aunty said magic wasn't real had made him small or slow. All the wizard kids he'd seen were bigger than him and talked smarter than him. Maybe if he used his magic he'd speed up. 

As if thinking about his magic had made him focus on where he was going he snapped his head up and looked for the rest of the first year group. In the distance he could see a large blurry dot he thought was Hagrid, the giant man who had come to pick him up from the shack and get his school things, leaving him in Madam Malkin's to sort himself out.  
He was far enough away that Harry doubted he'd catch up even at a full tilt run but the castle looked so big he really didn't want to get lost on the first night there. Harry bunched his robes into his fists and began sprinting as fast as his little legs would carry him, head down towards the last figure in the long line students working their way towards the school's doors. 

So intent on his footsteps and not falling as he ran Harry did not notice the tall, slender man until he ran smack into him. Falling back onto the ground Harry stared up at the man in shock, his stern expression worrying him, causing fear to ripple down his small frame. As the man crouched down towards him Harry began to back up, scraping his hands on the gravel path in order to get away.  
Hyperventilating, he tried to get away from the imposing figure above him. "Calm, child." An even sounding, baritone voice came from above him.  
"I'm a teacher, I'm not here to hurt you little one."

Shocked from his reverie by the injustice of the statement Harry breathed. "Not little," he protested petulantly but taking the man's proffered hand. He was dulled but to his full height of three feet, six and a half inches, thank you very much, yet only managed to just about meet the teacher's inky eyes as he was crouched next to him.  
"Severus Snape, Potions Master," the man said as he checked Harry over, the poor mite just a wee bit scared. The colour and shape of the child's emerald eyes told him exactly who the child was and he was afraid he'd been mistaken at the preconceptions of the spoiled gen son of his worst enemy that would turn up this September first. "So Harry, why aren't you with your class mates?" 

"Tripped, my robes'r too long, their legs'r too long. Can't keep up." The boy answered trying to make it sound like he wasn't so little, then realising that this Severus knew who he was. "How D'you..." Harry trailed off, not being able to get the sentence out. "You look like your mother, your eyes and nose too if you look hard enough. She was my best friend until I was fifteen basically my sister."  
Astounded by this Harry wasn't quite sure what to think. Someone who knew his mum and didn't hate him on sight. Aunty detested him and mummy was her sister. " Oh, " Harry breathed, lost for words. 

Severus sensing time was getting on a bit and worrying about the obvious little in front of him, despite being the first little to grace Hogwarts doors in his tenure, in fact the first since he'd graduated and reached out for the lad's hands as he stood. "Well we'd better catch up with the others hadn't we little one?" Gaining a noncommittal nod from the boy, he hoisted the little into his arms, perching him on his hip.  
"Not little, c'n walk." Came the muffled reply as Harry wormed his way into his shoulder.  
"I know, love, but this way will be quicker and you'll still be in time for the sorting." Severus replied, carefully skating over the whole little topic as one to be dealt with later.  
As they made their way up to the entrance hall Harry asked questions about the sorting which Severus endeavoured to answer in a way the little would both understand but would not ruin the magic of the experience. He outlined that the deputy headmistress, a Professor McGonagall would call his name and he'd then be seated on the stool to be sorted at which point the hat would talk to him about his options. Severus feeling that revealing some of the magic would be better than overwhelming the little and causing a meltdown that was sure to be of epic proportions now he has the background magic of Hogwarts to draw on.  
He outlined the houses and their key traits, telling Harry that he was a Slytherin and current head of that house and that his parents were Gryffindors in their time at the school.  
They had made good time and Severus placed a slightly dozey Harry Potter on his feet in the entrance hall just as Hagrid was handing the other first years over to Professor McGonagall. Turning to leave for the staff entrance and take his place at the head table he felt at tugging on his robes.  
"Sev'rus," Harry asked, looking a tad downcast as if he wasn't sure whether he wanted to ask the question. "Will you talk to me again... If I'm not a Slyth'rin?"

Crouching back down, so he could meet Harry's eyes Severus pulled the little one's hands into his own. "Little one," he said, not caring as to whether Harry would get affronted, "I will talk to you no matter what house you end up in, I'll always keep an eye out for you. I promised your mother and I will promise you too. Now how about we meet up after the sorting and we'll see about getting you some robes that fit? Hn?" Along with sorting out who your caretaker will be, Severus added in his head. He'd make sure Harry got better care than he did, he'd have a dedicated caretaker to support him and make sure he got on just as well as the rest of his year group rather than struggling socially as Severus himself had done.  
Harry nodded and hugged Severus' legs, blushing at the childish behaviour before turning to leave and join the end of the line. Severus put a hand on his shoulder, stopping him one last time. "It's in alphabetical order, little one. You fit in behind the Patil twins just there," Severus showed him, pointing to the taller girls about halfway down the line, before squeezing Harry's shoulder and sending him off. Yes he'd make sure the little had all the care he hadn't had. He'd put protections in place for the little and if needs be he'd adopt him. He felt too small even for a little that likely fell in the toddler mindset, too skinny and boney. Yes he'd need an extra pair of eyes on him at all times.

Severus understood what he'd be going through. He was a little all grown up, so of course he'd know how Harry felt all boxed in by the big kids. Harry Potter would have the best of protectors until him grew up. Hopefully the war wouldn't begin to affect him until well after that but either way he'd be protected come hell or high water. Severus would make sure of it.  
Anything for the other little, afraid enough of being alone that he'd tug on the robes of Hogwarts' scariest professor.

**Author's Note:**

> Might add to this as a lil drabble series.  
> I've taken being a little in a different direction.  
> Most people are gens but little's have emense magic power and have a slowed ageing and mental development to cope with learning to handle the power, they are little until the grow up, this takes different times for everyone depending on their magic power level and home life. There are times it can go wrong if they are treated badly especially if they don't know why things are different for them.  
> I think I'll add Sev's story to explain how it works and then a bit of Harry in school. Not sure how long I'd carry it on for. Hope you enjoy it. It really was a spur of the moment piece.


End file.
